Culture Columns

Due to its sheer vastness Indonesia contains a rich variety of cultures. Jakarta, Indonesia's capital city and the center of national politics and economics, is the melting pot of many such cultures. Starting from the colonial era - when the city was known as Batavia - people came from all corners of the archipelago to this developing megacity in search of a livelihood. As a consequence Jakarta currently has a population of almost ten million people (official figure). The distance from the area of cultural origin, however, has resulted in a fading of some cultural features (especially for those families that have been living in Jakarta for multiple generations), but it has been 'enriched' by a distinct urban culture.

  • National Heroes Indonesia: Ki Hajar Dewantara; Education Pioneer

    Ki Hajar Dewantara (also known as Raden Mas Soewardi Soerjaningrat), 1889-1959, was a writer, columnist, politician and advocator of Indonesian independence from the Dutch colonial power. However, he may be most remembered for his pioneering role in the development of education in the Indonesian colony. A native of Yogyakarta (Java), Dewantara founded the Taman Siswa school in 1922 in Yogyakarta. This school provided education for native Indonesians, whereas previously education was limited to the Dutch colonials and Javanese aristocracy.

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  • Tourism in Indonesia: Foreign Tourist Arrivals in 2015 slightly Short of Target

    Indonesia was visited by 6.3 million foreign tourists in the first eight months of 2015, up 2.7 percent (y/y) from the same period last year. However, foreign visitor arrivals on Bali, the most popular tourist destination in Indonesia, fell 11.3 percent (y/y) in August due to the temporary closure of Bali's Ngurah Rai international airport as Mount Raung (located in East Java) spew volcanic ash into the sky. This led to a sharp drop in Australian tourists entering Bali.

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  • Studying Abroad More Expensive for Indonesians as Rupiah Weakens

    Indonesia's heavily depreciated rupiah makes it more difficult for Indonesians to study abroad or to send their children to universities abroad without having the financial aid in the form of a scholarship. For those that are thinking of making such a decision, they need to take into account the performance of the Indonesian rupiah as well as the inflation outlook in the country of destination. So far in 2015, the Indonesian rupiah has depreciated 18 percent against the US dollar, 9 percent against the euro, 14 percent against China's yuan, and 2.4 percent against the Australian dollar.

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  • Exhibition Indonesian Art Group Tromarama in Stedelijk Museum

    From 12 June to 6 September 2015, the Stedelijk Museum Amsterdam, a Dutch museum dedicated to modern and contemporary international art and design, exhibits the work of Indonesian art group Tromarama. Tromarama, formed in 2006 (in Bandung), consists of Febie Babyrose (1985), Herbert Hans (1984) and Ruddy Hatumena (1984), all graduated from the well-known Bandung Institute of Technology. Although the group experiments with different artistic approaches, animation remains their favourite means of expression.

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